Another FIR filed against absconding con couple

Adwait and Neelam Datar, a couple who allegedly cheated their neighbours in Kothrud of Rs 20 lakh before absconding, now have another first information report (FIR) filed against them, this time by a leading jewellery store.u00a0

The latest FIR was filed by PNG Jewellers after cheque payments worth several lakhs made by the couple started bouncing. The couple went absconding about two weeks ago after they were accused of duping their neighbours of around Rs 20 lakh. The Datars were residing at the upmarket Shailesh Society in Kothrud. u00a0

The latest complaint was filed by Amit Madhukar Jadhav on Saturday at the Lashkar police station. Jadhav is PNG's branch manager at Sachapir Street in Camp.u00a0

According to the complaint, the couple used to buy gold in bulk from PNG and purchased around 920 grams of gold, making all payments in cheques. The complaint also states that the Datars were regular customers and all cheque payments made earlier were cleared, which earned them PNG's trust.u00a0

Between October 22 and October 28, the Datars purchased around 920 grams of gold and made a cheque payment of Rs 25.43 lakh from the Janata Sahakari Bank account of one of their relatives, Jyoti Prakash Kulkarni. The account was apparently empty, which caused the cheques to bounce.u00a0While Jadhav from PNG remained unavailable for comment, Police Sub-Inspector B C Gavit, who is the investigating officer in the case, said that they had booked the couple under Sections 406, 420 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and were trying to trace them.u00a0

The Datars are self-proclaimed investment bankers and they allegedly duped several of their neighbours of around Rs 20 lakh by promising them hefty returns on investments. In this case as well, several cheque payments made by the Datars to some of their clients bounced and complaints were registered against them at the Kothrud police station.